Programmers Who Hop

Yesterday, a programmer in my team came to my room (Mr. Y, to keep his life safe), and informed that he has secured a new job which gives him a 20% hike, and he is quitting. “Can I quit tomorrow?” – was his query. I was aback by the sheer irresponsibility and selfishness of the person who I was dealing with for the last two months. Yes, only last two months — struggling with programming badly for a project, and I and other team members have spent considerable amount of time to lift him up, and also the project is in half-way. This programmer is on run — actually he is hopping from one company to another!

I paused for a moment, and asked him if he has a few minutes to wait before he can vanish from my view and hop to the next unfortunate company. He obliged; of course, I also offered him a cup of tea to keep his lean patience upbeat. I then typed and printed a page. It was my autograph cum certificate for this man. It reads:

TO WHOMSOEVER IT MAY CONCERN

This is to certify that Mr. Y is a programmer who hops. He is the most unfortunate gift for any programming team.

All my best wishes for him for his frequent hopping across corporate landscapes.

Yes, this is not my lone experience. This phenomenon is widespread these days — project managers and tech heads, beware!